Load Balancing Explained: How SLB Works

Load balancing (SLB) is a network technology that distributes network traffic to multiple servers in order to improve performance, reliability, and scalability. Its working principle is as follows:

1. The client initiates the request by sending it to the load balancer. The request can be in the form of HTTP, TCP, or UDP.
2. The load balancer receives requests: The load balancer receives requests from clients and selects a target server using different algorithms (such as round-robin, least connections, etc.).
3. Load distribution: A load balancer forwards client requests to selected target servers.
4. The target server processes the request: After receiving the request, the target server processes it and then returns the response to the load balancer.
5. The load balancer responds by sending the response from the target server back to the client.

In this way, a load balancer can effectively distribute traffic, prevent server overload, and improve system performance and reliability. Additionally, the load balancer can monitor the health status of servers, promptly identify faulty servers and remove them, ensuring stable system operation.